"A guilty man set free on the account of another, is that justice? No that’s grace" Caleb & Sol

10 February 2014

FREEDOM TRUMPS BONDAGE

John
8:31-36

In this
world, different people have different kinds of freedom - freedom of speech,
freedom of press, freedom of religion, and so forth. However, I
would like to talk about the real freedom that comes from God. Sadly many people
do not have real freedom, because they’re looking for freedom in all the wrong
places. Truth has
fallen in the streets and the world is not listening! As John
MacArthur said “throughout history people have always sought to know the truth
about reality, about what is right and wrong, and about what is the meaningful
and purpose of in life. As a result endless philosophies, worldviews, and
religious systems have arisen over the centuries, each claiming to teach
absolute truth, and each in turn cancelling out the “absolute” truths of those
that came before it.” The great
majority of people in our culture today believe that mankind is on its own and
we are in control our own lives and destiny “we are free to do what we want, when we want too”. Maybe a great
majority of people follow after the teaching by Friedrich Nietzsche who said “There are no eternal facts, as there are no
absolute truths.” It doesn’t
take a rocket scientist to see that his statement has more holes in it then
Swiss cheese. If there is
no such thing as absolute truth! Then Nietzsche’s statement is false, because
he just made a so-called absolute truth that there is no truth. Sadly sin
does that to a person…….it keeps us in bondage, which leaves us ignorant
because our hearts are hardened to the truth. Again as
Jesus said “…..men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were
evil.” John 3:19.

Bondage by
definition is “Slavery or involuntary servitude; captivity; imprisonment;
restraint of a person's liberty by compulsion or force. Think about
for a moment! Slaves cannot
free themselves; they need to be set free. Martin Luther
takes up this subject in his book “The Bondage of the Will,” where he argues
that free-will is a myth (when it comes to our relationship with God). Luther said “We
are either slaves to sin or slaves to righteousness.” He’s right!
Remember what Paul wrote in Romans “Do you not know that to whom you present
yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of
sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?” Romans 6:16. Again as
Luther said “We are either slaves to sin or slaves to righteousness.”

LOOK WHAT THE
BIBLE SAYS TO THOSE WHO ARE IN BONDAGE [SLAVERY] TO SIN.It brings
death “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?”
Rom 7:24It deceives
the mind “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is
not in us.” 1 John 1:8. It entices
our affections “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone
loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the
world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not
of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust
of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.” 1 John 2:15-17. John Owen in
his book “Modification
of Sin”speaks about four strategies
that sin uses to entice, entangle, and ensnare our affections.

1.Sin
distracts us from watchfulness by pointing out our recent victories. Owen said “If
you recently escaped some temptation or another, watch out. Sin is preparing
the third assault. (The second assault has already happened: it's how good you
feel about yourself for having defeated the first assault.)”

2. Sin presents
itself as desirable and satisfying. It appeals to our most corrupt affections
and desires. It uses what Scripture calls "the fleeting pleasures of
sin" (Heb. 11:25).

3. Sin shows the
bait, but hides the hook! He says, "Sin deceitfully hides the danger that
attends sin. It covers it, just as the bait covers the hook."

4. Sin argues
with us. Like a slick lawyer, sin presents a case for itself.

To be bondage
to sin is to bring forth eternal judgement, everlasting torment by a holy God
who must do what is right………….PUNISH SIN! But sadly, everywhere
you look people are trying to find quick and easy fixes to their problem
because they’re in bondage to their sin. Whether it
is:

Marriage

Child rearing

Addictions

Self-fulfillment

Education

Weight loss

Financial
gain or riches and etc!

Quick fixes
don’t solve the issue it only covers them for a season! Why? The
reason is that they cannot see the truth to their problem because they are
slaves to sin and they hate the truth. People are usually
ok with truth as long as it doesn’t involve the bible or Jesus Christ. The Jews
completely missed the point that Jesus was making when he said “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And
you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."(v31-v32). And He also
went to say in (v34)"Most assuredly, I say to you,
whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. Jesus was speaking about their spiritual bondage,
but the Jews were thinking physically. Our culture
is no different than it was during the time of Pharisee’s and disbelievers. Just like
these men whom Jesus was speaking too didn’t think they were in any form of bondage. Look what
they said “We are
Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone….” (v33) in other
words what they were says was “Jesus we
haven’t been in bondage to anyone, so how could you make such an outlandish
statement like that.” Sadly, not
only did they misunderstand Jesus’ statement, but they were also deceived by
their own hardened hearts. Did the Jews
forget about all the bondage they have been in? They have had their share of bondage....Egyptians, Babylonians, Philistines, Greeks, and now the
Romans. The Jews were
slaves, but they would not admit it. See! Bondage
does that a person they don’t realize the danger they are in. It reminds me of the story i came across about a cocky young man who once remarked to a preacher in mocking fashion,
"You say that unsaved people carry a great weight of sin. Frankly, I feel
nothing. How heavy is sin? Ten pounds? Fifty pounds? Eighty pounds? A hundred
pounds?" The preacher
thought for a moment, then replied, "If you laid a four-hundred-pound
weight on a corpse, would it feel the load?" The young man
was quick to say, "Of course not; it's dead" Driving home
his point, the preacher said, "The person who doesn't know Christ is
equally dead. And though the load is great, he feels none of it"

Bondage keeps
a person …….

Ignorant

Prideful

Diluted

Skeptical

Angry

Unbelieving

Arrogant to the
truth and so on!

Today many
people are in bondage [slaves] and they feel they are not! It’s the idea
“I’m ok, I know when to quit” or “I
can stop any time”. Usually you
hear this coming from a person who is engulfed or knee deep in ……

Porn

Alcoholic
drink

Drug of chose

Passion for
riches

Keeping up
with the Jones

Abusive to
their spouse

Abusive to
their children

A Workaholic

Obsessed with
food

Idolatrous

Town gossiper

Angry and
bitter all the time

Keeps a
record of peoples wrongdoing

Judges people
without really knowing them or their situation

And the list
is endless

Let me ask
you before we continue in this passage! From this
list is there something I’ve said or not said that is keeping you in bondage to
sin this morning? The Jews
thought they were free because they are under the linage of the covenant
promise the God made with Abraham! And you might
think you’re free because you attend church, said some superstitious prayer or
grew up in a Christian home, or know enough bible to sound legit but not
really! Have you
truly tasted the grace that flowed from Calvary and the truth of the gospel
message! See, the
freedom that Jesus is talking about doesn’t come from your race, or religious
identity. [I’m a Baptist, Lutheran, and Non-denominational and so on]. Our freedom
is found in the Son of God who gave His life as a ransom for my sin, your sin! Jesus was
talking about freedom from the bondage of sin found in Him alone! Apart from
Christ and the truth he brings, a person will continue to stay in bondage until
the hopes of the Spirit removing the chains of sin in their life through the
gospel’s good news. The
transforming work of God and power it brings shatters the chains of bondage and
sin.

HOW
IMPORTANT IS TRUTH?Augustine
said “Where I found truth, there I found my God, who is the truth itself." The late great A.W Tozer
spoke about the dangers of not
seeking the truth “The unattended garden
will soon be overrun with weeds; the heart that fails to cultivate truth and
root out error will shortly be a theological wilderness. Truth is so
important…….. Jesus said it’s the only way your ever have true freedom! Jesus is not
teaching that we need to try really hard not to sin to avoid being its
property. He is
teaching that we need to be set free from the ownership of sin. So how is it
that we are set free from sin? Through the truth of the gospel! Again, so many
people today grow up really knowing nothing about Jesus at all. Yes, they have heard
some of the Bible stories, but they really don't know who Jesus is, his
purpose, or what Jesus has to do with God. I think at the core,
most people do believe there is a God, but they have no idea what to really
believe about who God is. In fact, people,
that I have talked to or observed, believe that there is no way to really know
the absolute truth about God.That is sad;
because what that tells me about that person is that they’re still slaves to
sin.

As the bible
says “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for
they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually
discerned.” 1 Cor 2:14. They are in all
intense purposes dead in their sin, because they’re in bondage to their sin! They deny the
truth and believe their father of lies which keeps them enslaved to sin and
death, which ultimately leads to eternal torment. But it’s not
too late to embrace the truth! Hear the promise! “Jesus
answered them, "Most
assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave
does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore if the
Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” (v34-v36)

The son has
permanent rights in the household where a slave does not! Though they
were descendants of Abraham’s promise they were like slaves, not sons, and they were
facing danger of eternally forfeiting they privileges they had received. Just as Jesus
said “And I say to you that many will come from east
and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be
weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matt 8:11-12. Only those
who receive Jesus Christ as the Son of God, will be the sons of God, which is the
only place you’ll find freedom from the bondage of sin and death. As Jesus said
“therefore if the
Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed” What a
promise and joy that brings to the heart of the one who continues in His truth......................WHAT
ARE WE FREE FROM?

WE
ARE FREE FROM THE BONDAGE OF SIN

Rom 6:6-13 “knowing
this, that our old man was crucified
with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For
he who has died has been freed from sin.
Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing
that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer
has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all;
but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon
yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in
its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to
sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your
members as instruments of righteousness to God.”

WE
ARE FREE FROM THE PENALTY OF DEATH.

Jesus said in
John 5:24, "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and
believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.”

In Romans
8:1-2 Paul says, "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are
in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the
law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin
and death."

WE
ARE FREE FROM THE LOSS OF BLESSING

Ephesians
1:3-7 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly
places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the
world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having
predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the
good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He
made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood,
the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.

Let me leave
you with this thought by J C Ryle as we close “Let us never rest till we have
some personal experience of this freedom ourselves. Without it all other
freedom is a worthless privilege. Free speech, free laws, political freedom,
commercial freedom, national freedom,–all these cannot smooth down a dying
pillow, or disarm death of [its] sting, or fill our consciences with peace.
Nothing can do that but the freedom which Christ alone bestows. He gives it
freely to all who seek it humbly. Then let us never rest till it is our own.” Always
remember, the promise that Jesus is offering is what true freedom really is! The gift of
eternal life and the freedom from the bondage of sin and to live life for Him
and His glory. Remember what
the bible declares about Christian who is free from the bondage of sin and
death!

I am not dead
but made alive in Christ Jesus.

I sit with
Christ in the heavenly places.

I am God’s
workmanship.

I am unable,
but the Spirit of God will produces in me: love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

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"Radical obediance to Christ is not easy; it is dangerous. It is not smooth sailing aboard a luxury liner; it is sacrificial duty aboard a troop carrier. It's not comfort, not health, not wealth, and not prosperity in this world. Radical obediance to Christ risks losing all these things. But in the end, such risk finds its reward in Christ. and He is more than enough for us." David Platt

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2 Timothy 2:8-14"Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us toa holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began,and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.Follow the pattern of the soundwords that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you."ESV

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John MacArthur says . . . " There seems almost no limit to what modern church leaders will do to entice people who aren't interested in worship and preaching. Too many have bought the notion that the church must win people by offering an alternative form of entertainment. Just how far will the church go in competing with Hollywood? A large church in the southwestern United States has installed a half-million dollar special-effects system that can produce smoke, fire, sparks, and laser lights in the auditorium. The church sent staff members to study live special effects at Bally's Casino in Las Vegas. The pastor ended one service by ascending to "heaven" via invisible wires that drew him up out of sight while the choir and orchestra added a musical accompaniment to the smoke, fire, and light show. It was just a typical Sunday show for that pastor: "He packs his church with such special effects as ... cranking up a chain saw and toppling a tree to make a point ... the biggest Fourth of July fireworks display in town and a Christmas service with a rented elephant, kangaroo and zebra. The Christmas show features 100 clowns with gifts for the congregation's children."Shenanigans like that would have been the stuff of Spurgeon's worst nightmares. And even Tozer could not have foreseen the extreme to which evangelicals would go in paying homage to the great god Entertainment. "

What does it mean to live a cross centered life?by Pastor Mike AndrewsWe as Christians know that there is only one road to take. The Bible say's "wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it" (Matt 7:13). Why is there so many people who profess Jesus Christ taking this road? (Phil 3:19) "Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things". The Bible say's the wide road leads to destruction. Which means eternally separated from a HOLY and Sovereign GOD. There is ony one road for GENUINE Christian. And it's the narrow road. A life that is: 1) Self denial2) Caring your cross daily3) Desiring the things of God4) Hating the things that God hates5) Submission and obedience6) Holy living7) Expects any kind of persecution.(Mat 10:22) and you will be hated by all for My name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved(1 John 3:13) Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you.A.W. Tozer says "The true follower of Christ will not ask, "If I embrace this truth, what will it cost me?" Rather he will say, "This is truth. God help me to walk in it, let come what may!" (1Pet 4:16-17) Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?We must stand strong in the Gospel of Christ. Holding to His promise of eternal life.
1. A Cross Centered life never is ashamed of His Gospel, for which He suffers,
2. A Cross Centered Life is never ashamed of the name he bears (Christian)
3. Nor of the punishment he endures, but let US, as OUR Lord and Master did, endure the cross.

"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." John Piper"Alan Redpathhad two daughters who loved to swarm him when he came home at night. As he came in the door one evening, his little girls ran to meet him. One grabbed his leg and hugged him with all her might. He snatched the other daughter up in his arms. The one squeezing his leg said, "Now, I've got all of Daddy." The daughter in his arms replied, "Yes, but Daddy has got all of me!" Perhaps the question we need to continually ask is, "Does God have all of me?" Alan Redpath

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"Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE") Gal 3:13. That's why as the great puritan once said "I preach as a dying man,to dying men. Richard Baxter...."